Estate agents opt for sale by drone
Real estate agents no longer rely on a simple ‘‘for sale’’ sign and a couple of fliers – new research shows that more than half the country’s salespeople have used drone footage to help them sell properties.
Another 30 per cent of the agents polled by the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) had considered it.
REINZ chief executive Bindi Norwell said more salespeople were using new technology than she had expected. She said a drone was a good way to get a bird’s eye view of a property.
‘‘As the cost of using drones continues to decrease, and there is a higher demand for seeing properties marketed in this light, we expect that we will see an even higher uptake in the future,’’ Norwell said.
‘‘We are hearing that more real estate agents are offering vendors the opportunity to include drone footage as an additional option as part of the overall marketing package of their properties, by using professional organisations who understand the regulations and requirements surrounding drone usage.’’
Real estate agents aged 50 to 59 were more likely to use drones than those aged under 39.
Three-dimensional ‘‘walkthroughs’’, which allow people to get the impression of being inside a property, were becoming increasing popular, too.
While only 19 per cent of the agents had used walk-throughs, another 52 per cent had considered using the technology.
Another 4 per cent had used virtual reality options. It was particularly popular for the sale of commercial and industrial properties, Norwell said.
The research showed agents used a lot of social media. Half had used unpaid social media to market a property and 20 per cent had considered it.
Another 39 per cent had used paid social media advertising.
Wellington salespeople had the most use of social media, followed by South Island agents and Aucklanders.
Wellington also led the charge with virtual reality, with 8 per cent of agents there using it.
Norwell said many buyers, especially those buying for the first time, spent a lot of time researching properties online before they made their decisions.
Social media was another way of reaching out to those buyers, she said.
‘‘New Zealand has more than 2.2 million active daily users on Facebook, 1 million Instagram users and 529,000 Twitter users,’’ she said.
‘‘So the use of social media as part of the overall marketing of a property makes absolute sense and it’s an excellent place to reach potential purchasers who are extremely active in this space.’’
Norwell said marketing methods were evolving and what was cutting-edge and unusual now could be standard practice within a few years’ time.
Real estate agent Karl Leathley, of LJ Hooker, said his drone was worth the investment. He used it to take photos of properties that could not be easily photographed from the ground.
‘‘I would probably use the drone for approximately half the properties I list,’’ Leathley said.
‘‘I wanted to have a point of difference. Being able to offer aerial photographs for no extra charge appealed to me.
‘‘I felt it also helped strengthen my assertion of offering great marketing.’’